We All Bleed Redd
by D'oroTavolo
Summary: Hazel moved to Starry Acres to start a new life, not to solve a mystery. As soon as she arrives, Hazel is thrown into the drama surrounding a group known as the "Family." From thievery to vandalism, the Family has terrorized both the City and Starry Acres for nearly a year. Hazel joins Inspector Nook and his assistant Kicks to try to bring down the Family for good.


**We All Bleed Redd**

**Chapter One: Starry Acres**

"We be approaching the bus stop in a few minutes," Kapp'n murmured. The driver was worn down, and his exhausted demeanor made the trip especially gloomy. "Keep yer' wits about ye… Hold tight to all yer' belongins."

"Uh.. Heh, don't let Kapp'n bother you, Hazel! He's just been in the dumps lately, that's all," Rover uncomfortably laughed. Hazel smiled weakly as she turned back to the window. The sun was about to set.

The turtle's wary behavior and Rover's trembling voice put Hazel on edge. She pulled a crumpled brochure from her pocket. A cheerful group of animals smiled and waved in the picture on the front; she assumed these would be her future neighbors. Big letters at the top read _Starry Acres: We'll Put a Twinkle in Your Eye!_ Kapp'n must have never been there, because his eyes were as dull and void as a black hole.

Hazel pushed her nerves away. Besides, she was supposed to be nervous. She was starting a new life in a new town! She was told that she would meet a ring-eyed shopkeeper at the bus stop. What was his name, again… Mr. Rook? Mr. Cook? Oh well, Hazel didn't need to worry about a thing like that. Shopkeepers always wore nametags.

The bus screeched to a stop and the doors slung open. Hazel rose from her seat with determination. "Good luck!" Rover said brightly. Hazel walked down the bus aisle and stepped onto the platform.

"You'll need it," Kapp'n muttered, and the door slammed shut. Rover waved feebly from the window as the bus sped away. Hazel glanced down at her brochure, then at the town. Starry Acres made Kapp'n look like he won the lottery.

Despite the smiling crowd of villagers on the front of her brochure, Hazel saw no one. From the platform, she could only see two houses; one had a bright pink roof, the other a drab brown. A museum stood to her far right.

Remembering the bus driver's desolate words, Hazel cautiously made her way down the steps. All she knew to do was to meet a shopkeeper; she had no idea _where _this shopkeeper would be. She tried knocking on the doors of the houses, but both were empty. Not knowing where else to go, Hazel headed towards the museum.

"Oi! You there!" Someone cried out from behind her. Hazel spun around to see a skunk in suspenders running towards her. "Hold on!"

Hazel came to a halt, and the skunk caught up to her. In addition to his suspenders, he wore leather boots and a paperboy cap. "You're Hazel, right?" Hazel nodded in agreement. "Alright, miss, come with me."

"Well, I'm actually looking for a raccoon. He keeps a shop," Hazel started, shocked by the abruptness of the skunk. "Could you tell me where he is?"

"Where do you think I'm _taking_ you, miss? And technically, he's a tanuki." With that, the skunk started walking towards the museum. "The name's Kicks, by the way. Come on, we don't want to be late."

Hazel and Kicks walked briskly to the museum. "Why don't we want to be late? Where are we going?" Hazel persistently asked.

"A meeting," Kicks answered shortly. As they approached, Hazel saw wanted posters plastered all over the walls. The faces on the discolored posters were hard to make out, but she could tell that they were all the same.

"Who is _that_?" she wondered aloud as they walked inside the museum. The exhibits were barred off, and shouts could be heard downstairs. Kicks smiled wryly.

"You're about to find out, miss."

As they descended down the stairs, the shouts grew louder. No one noticed their entry; everyone was focused on the tanuki standing center stage.

"We can't take this any more, Nook!" A white tiger bellowed over the other voices. "We thought you had this under control!"

"That's Rolf," Kicks explained. "He's angry a lot, a real pain sometimes. But he's never left Starry Acres. That dog next to him, that's Butch. He moved in 'bout six months ago, lives near the beach." The dog Butch was shaking his fist at Nook.

"Who are _they_?" Hazel asked as she pointed to another dog and a blue colored bear towards the front of the crowd.

"Cookie and Poncho. Cookie's real optimistic. Always stands up for Nook. Poncho does, too. They can't stand Rolf or Butch, so they stick together."

"I guess they're my neighbors?" Hazel asked.

"Them, plus one other. The last one's over there, by herself. As always." Kicks pointed to an elegant looking wolf sulking in a chair next to the bar. "Her name's Vanessa. She only comes to these meetings cause the Mayor requires it." Kicks nodded towards a turtle, who was shaking his cane at Rolf and ordering him to pipe down. "The rest of these people own shops, try to make a living while they still can."

Hazel looked at all the other animals crowded into the small café. She saw a rooster in a coat and tie behind the bar, an oddly mellow dog with white fur, and a pair of hedgehogs sporting aprons. However, the strangest by far was an angry mole wearing a hardhat and waving a pickaxe.

"That's Mr. Resetti," Kicks explained. He must have seen Hazel's bewildered look. "You'd be better off avoiding him, miss."

"Have you made _any _progress, Tom?" One of the hedgehogs asked desperately. Her sister gazed steadily at the floor.

"We're doing the best we can. We have eyes and ears in the city giving us information daily, so yes. We're making progress," Nook answered.

"Do we have anyone besides old Shoe Shine of yours? A lot of help _he _is!" Butch growled.

"Watch it, chum. I don't see how _you're _helping the situation," Kicks replied, taken aback.

"Really, Butch. Chill out," the white dog said.

"I don't think your _cool vibes_ will help get rid of the Family, Slider. Stay out of this," Rolf reamed.

"All right, everybody just calm down," Nook started. "We all know we have a serious situation at hand. The Family. Crazy Redd has taken his game to a new level. He has gone on the offensive, if you will. He has vandalized shops, stolen works of art… You name it, he's done it. But the only way he can pull these stunts off is with the Family. And as far as we know, members of the Family could be sitting among us, right now."

A chilling silence settled in the room.

"If we can identify members of the Family, we have the power to put Redd behind bars. But we have to work together if we want to achieve anything. Kicks goes to the City everyday to get information. He brings it back to me and we both try to pick through it. We're doing all we can. It will take more than just us to take down the Family, though; it will take all of Starry Acres. Understood?"

Once again, silence.

"Come to my office tomorrow morning to get an assignment. We have suspects in the City, so we need to get to work right away. Meeting dismissed."

Without a word, everyone filed up the stairs and then out of the museum.

"Hey, boss!" Kicks said cheerfully, dragging Hazel over to Nook. He was sitting on the edge of the stage, rubbing his head with his paws. He looked just as tired as Kapp'n. "Hazel finally showed up!"

"Oh, hello, Hazel," Nook said, trying to show a bit of hospitality. "Welcome to Starry Acres. I hate that you had to come in at a time like this; Starry Acres really is a lovely town."

"It's alright, Mr. Nook," Hazel started. "I'd like to help with this project of yours."

"Of course, of course," Nook rambled, his mind obviously elsewhere. "We'll have something for you to do. We can talk about house mortgage some other time. The crisis at hand is far more important than house debt. Kicks, show Hazel to her new home."

"Yes, boss," Kicks replied, then started walking up the stairs. "Come on, Hazel."

When they walked outside, stars were coming out one by one. The further they walked, the more Hazel realized why this town was called Starry Acres. Despite what the Family had done, they couldn't get rid of the night sky. The stars gave Hazel hope in this new life.

"Well, here you go," Kicks said as they approached a small house with a purple roof. "Home sweet home, yeah? It's a bit cozy, but you'll get used to it. I leave out for the City in the morning. But before I go, I can walk you over to Nook's place so you can get started!"

"Alright, Kicks," Hazel answered. "See you in the morning." He waved goodbye and started back to the office. With a bit of excitement, Hazel opened the door to her new house. Kicks was right; it was a bit cozy. But it put a roof over her head and gave her a bed to sleep in; what else did she need? Hazel got to bed early so she could report to Nook right away the next morning. Hopefully, she could learn more about this Family.


End file.
